The things to do in San Antonio that we could check are the Alamo, the River Walk, the four Missions of the National Historical Park, Hemisfair and the Tower of the Americas, Market Square, the Botanical Garden, the McNay Art Museum and Natural Bridge Caverns. Most of downtown works without a car, using the $1.30 VIA bus. We read each official page on 15 October 2026.
The sights, with address, hours and price
The Alamo
Address: 300 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX 78205 (The Alamo, Visiting Tips page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Open daily 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The Collections Center closes at 5 p.m. Plaza de Valero is open Sunday to Thursday 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Closed Christmas Day. The page says last church and grounds entry is 15 minutes before closing, and last Collections Center entry is 1 hour before closing (same page)
Price: Alamo Church is always free, but you must reserve a free ticket ahead of your visit. The Alamo Exhibit in the Collections Center is $15 for an adult and $11 for a child 12 and under. The self-guided audio experience is $20 and $18. The guided tour is $48 and $38 and includes the exhibit, an augmented reality show and church entry (The Alamo, Tours and Experiences page, same date)
The page says musket firing demonstrations run every day at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. in Plaza de Valero. A 17 minute film is free and plays outside the Long Barrack from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Alamo sells a San Antonio CityPASS for $63 an adult and $53 for ages 3 to 11. It covers the Alamo Exhibit and church plus entry to 4 top attractions, says the Alamo.
San Antonio River Walk
Address: The River Walk has no single address. It is 15 miles long and runs through about five miles of downtown (River Walk official site, FAQs page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The Downtown and Museum Reach parts are open 24 hours a day. The Mission Reach part is open in daylight only. Businesses set their own hours (same page)
Price: Free. The page calls the River Walk a public park. Boat rides, attractions and other activities cost extra (same page)
Go Rio Cruises runs the boats. Its FAQ says narrated cruises run every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. for most of the year, tickets are not time specific, and boats leave the docks every 15 minutes. You need no reservation for a public narrated cruise. The River Shuttle runs about every hour. We did not read a cruise ticket price. Go Rio says most River Walk restaurants close around 10 p.m. and bars close at 2 a.m. (goriocruises.com FAQ, read 15 Oct 2026).
San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Address: Mission San José, 6701 San Jose Drive, San Antonio, TX 78214. This is also the park Visitor Center. The other missions are Concepción at 807 Mission Road, San Juan at 9101 Graf Road, and Espada at 10040 Espada Road (National Park Service, directions page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The park is open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The outside grounds are open sunrise to sunset. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day (NPS, hours page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Price: Free. The NPS says an entrance pass is not required (NPS, fees page, read 15 Oct 2026)
The NPS page for Mission San José says free ranger tours leave the Visitor Center daily at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. Each mission is about 2.5 miles from the next, and parking is free at each one, says the directions page. About 10 miles of trail link the four missions, and the riverside path can close for high water. B-cycle bike stations stand at each mission site.
Hemisfair
Address: Civic Park, 210 S. Alamo St. Yanaguana Garden is at 434 S. Alamo. The park office is at 630 E. Nueva (Hemisfair, home page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The page lists the park open daily 5 a.m. to midnight (same page)
Price: The page states no admission fee. It describes several events as free (same page)
Tower of the Americas
Address: 739 E Durango Blvd, San Antonio, TX 78205 (Tower of the Americas, home page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Sunday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. The FAQ gives these hours for the Observation Deck, the 4D Theater, the café and the shops (Tower FAQ page, same date)
Price: Observation Deck and 4D Theater: adult $19.50, senior $16, military $16, children 4 to 12 $15, children under 3 free. The FAQ does not list age 3 (same page)
The FAQ says to plan 2 to 3 hours for the Tower. It puts the average time on the observation deck at 30 minutes to an hour.
Market Square
Address: 514 W Commerce, San Antonio, TX 78207 (Historic Market Square, official site, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Not confirmed. The pages we read list no opening hours. Each business sets its own
Price: The site lists no entry fee
The city's site says there are over 100 locally owned businesses, with Mexican and Tex-Mex food, crafts, leather goods and live entertainment nearly every weekend. Call 210-207-8600 for hours.
Pearl
Address: Not confirmed. The Pearl pages we read give no street address (Pearl, atpearl.com, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Pullman Market is open every day, Sunday to Thursday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (Pearl, Markets page). Farmers markets run on Saturday (local produce and meat) and Sunday (artisan goods). The page gives no times for them
Price: The district has no entry fee that we saw. Shops, food and events set their own prices
Pearl was once the site of the Pearl Brewing Company, says its site. Hotel Emma, in a 19th-century brewhouse, has 146 rooms, says the same site.
San Antonio Botanical Garden
Address: 555 Funston Place, San Antonio, TX 78209 (San Antonio Botanical Garden, visit page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The page shows three sets of hours. The header says Monday to Saturday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The March to October line says Sunday to Thursday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. The footer says March to November 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekends. They disagree, so check before you go. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day (same page)
Price: Monday to Thursday: adult $18, child 3 to 13 $13, military or student $16. Friday to Sunday: adult $22, child $15, military or student $20. Under 3 free (same page)
McNay Art Museum
Address: 6000 N New Braunfels Ave., San Antonio, TX 78209 (McNay, visit page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Sunday noon to 5 p.m. Monday and Tuesday closed. Wednesday and Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The sculpture grounds are open every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Daylight Saving Time and to 6 p.m. in Standard Time (same page)
Price: General admission: adult $23, ages 13 to 19 $10, students 20 and over with ID and seniors 65 and over $18. Children 12 and under, active military and veterans are free. Free general admission on Thursdays 4 to 9 p.m. and the first Sunday of the month noon to 5 p.m. Special exhibition access is $10 at those times (same page)
Natural Bridge Caverns
Address: 26495 Natural Bridge Caverns Rd, San Antonio, TX 78266 (Natural Bridge Caverns, home page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Not confirmed. The hours page on the site did not show times when we read it
Price: The FAQ says prices can change daily with sales and expected crowds, and that buying earlier usually saves more. Single cavern tour tickets for adults start at $25. Parking is $10 a day (same site, FAQ page)
The Discovery Tour takes about 75 minutes and the Hidden Wonders Tour about 70, says the site. We did not confirm how far the caverns are from downtown. The FAQ says the closest hotels are in Schertz, 8 miles away.
Free things to do in San Antonio
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Alamo Church. It is free, but you must reserve a ticket. The Alamo film outside the Long Barrack is free too.
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The River Walk. It is a public park.
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The four Missions and their grounds. The NPS lists no fee.
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Hemisfair park. The page states no admission fee.
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The McNay on Thursdays from 4 to 9 p.m. and on the first Sunday of the month from noon to 5 p.m.
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Market Square. The site lists no entry fee.
San Antonio with kids
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Alamo: a child 12 and under pays $11 for the Alamo Exhibit.
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Tower of the Americas: children 4 to 12 pay $15, and under 3 are free.
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Botanical Garden: ages 3 to 13 pay $13 or $15, and under 3 are free.
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McNay: children 12 and under are free.
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Missions park: no fee. A ranger program is usually at 10 and 11 a.m. at Mission San José.
On VIA buses, children 4 and under ride free, and ages 5 to 13 pay the reduced fare.
Where to stay in San Antonio
We checked no hotel's rate or room list, so we give no prices. This is our read of the sight addresses above.
| Area | What it is near |
|---|---|
| Downtown and the River Walk | The Alamo, the River Walk, Market Square, Hemisfair, the Tower of the Americas |
| Pearl | Pearl shops, Pullman Market, Hotel Emma |
| Near the Botanical Garden and the McNay | 555 Funston Place and 6000 N New Braunfels Ave. |
| Near the Missions | Mission San José at 6701 San Jose Drive, with free parking at each mission |
Downtown suits a first visit with no car. Check your own dates, because rates change with events.
Getting around San Antonio
VIA Metropolitan Transit lists these fares, read 15 Oct 2026. A regular bus ride is $1.30. Express is $2.60. A day pass is $2.75, a 7-day pass is $12 and a 31-day pass is $38. Reduced fares are half: $0.65 a ride and $1.35 for a day pass. VIA says the day pass is valid for unlimited rides on the day it is activated. Transfers are free, and VIA says they last 2.5 hours. Children 4 and under ride free, and ages 5 to 13 pay the reduced fare. Seniors 62 and over qualify for reduced fares.
Airport to downtown
The airport's own page says VIA route 5 runs from San Antonio International Airport to downtown. The fare is $1.30, and transfers are free. The page lists a ride of about 30 minutes. It says the route operates every day and that frequency may vary through the day and on weekends. The stop is at the far west end of Terminal B, reached from the lower roadway at arrivals and baggage level. We did not find first and last bus times, or any taxi or rideshare fare, so we give none (San Antonio Airport, public transportation page, read 15 Oct 2026).
Do I need a car in San Antonio?
Not for the downtown sights. The Alamo, the River Walk, Market Square, Hemisfair and the Tower of the Americas are all in the downtown area by address, and route 5 links the airport. We did not measure walking times. For the Missions, the NPS says VIA route 42 serves only the two northern ones, Concepción and San José. The northernmost to the southernmost mission is about 6.5 miles and about 15 minutes by car. A car or a rideshare helps for Natural Bridge Caverns, which says it has no public transit or shuttle. It also says a rideshare home needs a pickup scheduled in advance, or the wait can be an hour or more.
Best time to visit San Antonio
These are NOAA 1991 to 2020 monthly normals for the San Antonio International Airport station, read from the NCEI data service on 15 October 2026. Highs and lows are in degrees Fahrenheit.
| Month | Average high | Average low | Rain (inches) |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | 73.8 | 51.8 | 2.31 |
| April | 80.3 | 58.4 | 2.42 |
| August | 96.0 | 74.9 | 2.15 |
| October | 82.2 | 60.4 | 3.75 |
August is the hottest month at 96.0 degrees on average. March sits near 74 degrees and October near 82. May is the wettest month at 4.40 inches. The NPS says summer months can be extremely hot and the Mission Reach trail is not shaded. The comparison is ours; NOAA does not rank the months.
What we checked and what can change
Read on 15 October 2026: the Alamo's home, Visiting Tips and Tours and Experiences pages, the official River Walk FAQ page, goriocruises.com FAQ, the NPS pages for San Antonio Missions (hours, fees, directions, Mission San José), the Hemisfair home page, the Tower of the Americas home and FAQ pages, Historic Market Square's home page, Pearl's home and Markets pages, the Botanical Garden visit page, the McNay visit page, Natural Bridge Caverns' home, hours and FAQ pages, VIA's fares page and reduced fares page, the airport's public transportation page, and NOAA NCEI 1991 to 2020 monthly normals.
Not confirmed: Market Square hours, the Pearl street address and farmers market times, the Natural Bridge Caverns hours (its hours page showed blank times), its distance from downtown and its ticket prices above the $25 starting price, Go Rio cruise prices, the Botanical Garden's correct hours (the page contradicts itself), the Alamo's last entry time (its footer says 30 minutes before closing, its tips section 15), route 5 frequency and first and last times, any taxi or rideshare fare, and any hotel rate. Prices and hours change, so check the operator's page for your date. We did not visit San Antonio for this page.
